‘This event is bigger than UBC’: AMS VICE hosts naloxone training party

published on October 21, 2017 by Joshua Azizi in The Ubyssey

On Thursday, AMS VICE hosted a naloxone training party in the Nest Performance Centre. Through the program, trainers educated attendees about opioids and taught them how to administer naloxone — a drug that reverses the effects of an opioid overdose.

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Opioids in Vancouver

Before the training began, the event began with a presentation from Karmik’s volunteers that discussed various aspects of substance use in Vancouver. Presenters included Karmik owner and Downtown Eastside support worker Munroe Craig, nightlife organizer Daniyah, UBC Anthropology PhD candidate Hillary Agro, UBC School of Population and Public Health PhD candidate Stephanie Lake, as well as UBC political science student and Canadian Students for Sensible Drug Policy Vancouver member Chuka Ejeckam.

The instructors asked the audience to view drug users from an empathetic lens and not one that reinforces societal stigmas against them. For example, when discussing the importance of language, they asked people to avoid using derogatory terms such as “addict” or “junkie.”